經律異相 28.22

28.22

In ancient times there was a Buddha named Shiwu. At that time there was a king named Haoxin (Good Faith) who delighted in the Buddha-Dharma and never tired of gazing upon the Buddha. He planted a nyagrodha tree, and beneath the tree spread out a sandalwood couch for the Buddha. The Buddha sat upon it, and King Haoxin listened to the sūtras. After the Buddha's parinirvāṇa, the king, no longer seeing the Buddha, named the nyagrodha tree the 'Buddha tree.' Seeing it was like seeing the Buddha; day after day he went and sat beneath the tree, visualizing and hearing the teachings and precepts at the place where the Buddha had constantly sat. The king had a maidservant named Julu who constantly attended at the king's side. The queen was jealous and hired a brāhmaṇa to chant incantations to kill the Buddha tree. On the night of the seventh day of the fourth month, that brāhmaṇa took the brain of a large venomous serpent from the southern mountains and smeared it on the tree; the tree withered and died immediately. The king wept sorrowfully and was beside himself with grief. In the middle of the night on the eighth day of the fourth month, when the morning star appeared, he took five-colored fragrant water, gathered flowers, and bathed this tree. It immediately revived. The king then made a vow, saying, 'May the time when all Buddhas of the ten directions are born be this day; the time when they attain the Way be this day; and their parinirvāṇa also be this day.' From that time forth, the appearance of the Buddhas in the world has always been on this day. Therefore, the Buddha is bathed on the eighth day of the fourth month. (From the Xiuyuan guobao jing.)